There are 10 kids in her class, with 3 trained 'conductor' teachers. Then there are always a few extra 'assistants' helping, as, many hands needed to help. But, they still do an amazing job.
The kids all sit on wooden chairs, with their feet flat on a wooden box, at a wood slated table. Every single piece of equipment is with purpose. The chair and foot rest is for posture and positioning (to strengthen as sitting). For all of the kids, they are working when sitting, as it is a task to help strengthen their core. Some kids are able to sit on their own, some are not. The slats on the table are for the children to hold on to something if needed. The teacher teaches to the children, getting their attention with a 'pirate' theme - singing songs, learning about what floats/sinks, patterning, etc.
Then, comes the 'line time'. The first of many 'exercises' to work on coordination, strengthening, crossing midline etc. So, they have to pull themselves up onto the table, laying on the table on their stomachs. There is a ball in front of them. They have to reach for the ball, put in behind their back, and hold on to it, while lifting the ball up and down. It's almost like a pilates workout. They continue to do many more workouts - rolling from side side, rolling over, and more.
The rest of the day involves more exercises - walk to the hallway with group of kids (can take 30 minutes). Sitting against the wall, sitting and moving legs up and down, walking along the wall, or up a stairwell.
The cutest thing about the whole thing is how they do it together. I love that Reese can look around the room and feel like everyone is working on similar tasks. There is also some amount of peer pressure. They look at each other to see what the others are doing. But the best is when they try to help each other - when really they can barely do the task themselves.
The last part of the day is working on hand coordination at the table, by doing a craft project. So, they will warm up their hands while sitting at the table by singing 'where is thumbkin', or holding on to a ball and opening and closing their hands. These tasks are simple, and yet so hard for these kids.
I wish we would have found Conductive Learning sooner, but I feel blessed to have found it (thanks Ali & Jason). And then its just a nice bonus to come back to Pa and Mar's place and go to the beach and be on 'vacation' at the same time!!
Progress ? Time will tell. I used to hate this term when they told me it a few years ago. But, I am learning to understand what it really means. At camp, they are working with her to use 3 pronged crutches. This is very hard for her because of her challenges with balance. But, no matter what, practice and strengthening exercises will only make her stronger and her movements more coordinated. And with that, her determination and will - we shall see!